Not sure if this is the right forum, but I could use a bit of help here. I am likely giving my current tv (Maxent 42mx3) to my parents to replace their old CRT that now just shows red because the house I just bought doesn't have room for something quite so large in the living room.

My question, however, is what HD or HD-DVR box(es) does comcast use in the Chicago area (they are in the western suburbs, elmhurst to be exact)? I ask because my tv only supports stetching and zooming on s-video or rca inputs, but not on the component or hdmi inputs. I have gotten around this because you can change the zoom level via the SA8300HD DVR box that I currently have, and so I just programmed that button as a soft button on my harmony remote.

It seems that most of the boxes used in Chicago by comcast appear to be by motorola. Do they have any sort of feature that allows for changing of the zoom level in their HD boxes? The SA box has normal, stretch and two zoom modes that make life nice and easy. I just don't want to give my parents a tv that they are going to burn in because they can't stretch the SDTV to fit the screen. I appreciate any insight that people have on this.

Comcast Chicago uses Motorola hardware.

Most displays do not let you zoom / stretch 720p and 1080i input signals. Motorola and Scientific Atlanta boxes can both be configured to output SD as 480i over component and HDMI, eliminating the need to use s-video and RCA output.

The following post may be of help.With cable STBs/DVRs, picture quality has a lot to do with the setting on the box. You need to make sure you are outputting SD as 480i.

For Scientific Atlanta STBs/DVRs like the SA8300HD, the instructions differ depending on whether your box uses SARA, Passport, or TWC Navigator software. With SARA, turn the unit off, then press and hold down the info and guide buttons until the setup screen appears; choose Advanced Setup and enable 4:3 480i, 720p, and 1080i; save that change, turn the box back on, and choose Passthrough/AutoDVI/AutoHDMI in Settings -> Settings menu. Pass through, AutoDVI, and AutoHDMI all refer to the same setting, they are just named differently depending on whether you are using component, HDMI, or DVI cables.

With Passport, enter the Settings -> Settings menu and find the output settings; enable native mode with 480i, 720p, and 1080i checked.

For Motorola STBs/DVRs like the DCT641x and DCT341x, turn the box off, press menu, and then enable 4:3 override set to 480i. The output setting should be 720p or 1080. The best setting is one that outputs 720p channels as 720p and 1080i channels as 1080i, but unfortunately, Motorola STBs/DVRs do not offer that option. You've got to convert 720p channels to 1080i or 1080i channels to 720p, neither of which the Motorola STB does well, although you may not see a difference at smaller sizes. The Motorola's 720p output setting is optimal for ABC, FOX, ESPN, ESPN2, A&E, and NGCHD. The 1080i setting is optimal for most other HD channels.

Thanks. So I would just need to set it up for them so that all SD content is 480i (and thus stretched) and all HD content will then be native?

Thanks. So I would just need to set it up for them so that all SD content is 480i (and thus stretched) and all HD content will then be native?For Scientific Atlanta boxes, yes.

With Motorola boxes, you've got to choose between 720p and 1080i for HD channels, so not every channel is displayed natively.

Wouldn't know the Model #'s for the Motorola?

I just ordered comcast and was curious of what STB I might get.